


Scribbles

by tay_tay19



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:13:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23720641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tay_tay19/pseuds/tay_tay19
Summary: Everyone is born with a soulmate, a perfect match. Someone that will always love them, unconditionally. When you come into the world the first words that your soulmate will ever speak to you are etched onto the skin of your wrist in their handwriting. Yuri Plisetsky is not everyone, Yuri Plisetsky does not have a soulmate. Instead of beautiful, thoughtful words he just has a scribble and Yuri is perfectly okay with that.
Relationships: Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky
Comments: 9
Kudos: 247





	Scribbles

Everyone is born with a soulmate, a perfect match. Someone that will always love them, unconditionally. When you come into the world the first words that your soulmate will ever speak to you are etched onto the skin of your wrist in their handwriting. Yuri Plisetsky is not everyone, Yuri Plisetsky does not have a soulmate. Instead of beautiful, thoughtful words he just has a scribble and Yuri is perfectly okay with that. Yuri has never needed someone to love him unconditionally. He does not need a mother, he does not need a father, he doesn’t even need friends. He can do everything on his own. That’s why he’s completely unprepared when Victor announces that he’s going to be choreographing his short program to Agape. 

“Switch them!” he screams at victor, “That piece isn’t me at all!”

“You have to do the opposite of what people expect. How else will you surprise them? That’s my motto” Yuri wants to punch that stupid smug smile off of his stupid face. “Actually, you’re both far more ordinary and mediocre than you think.” Yuri might actually kill him. He’s so angry that he really doesn’t hear much of what Victor says, until he’s declaring that he won’t work with them if he doesn’t match their standards. How dare Victor compare him to that stupid pig Katsuki, he hasn’t even made his senior debut yet but he already knows that he’ll defeat the japanese skater. If Victor needs proof of that then he’ll provide it. 

“Fine. I’ll skate to Agape. My senior division debut depends on it!” Yuri yells “You’d better give me a program that’ll let me win!”

“It’s up to you whether you win or not. If I skated the program, I’d win for sure, though” Yuri is really really going punch him. 

“If I win, Victor, you’re coming back to Russia and you’re becoming my coach!” Yuri needs Victor. He needs to win with this debut, He needs to prove to everyone that he’s not just some kid and if he needs to skate to agape then he will. Even if he’s not someone who will ever experience that kind of unconditional love.

If Yuri is really honest with himself he wasn’t at all surprised that Victor took off to Japan at the first chance he got. With both of them training under Yakov for so long Yuri had plenty of chances to see the words etched on Victor’s wrist, ‘ **_Victor, my family runs a hot spring resort, so please come.’_ **Yuri thought that it was a stupid first sentence, clearly Victor’s soulmate would be a fan and fans were all annoying. The first time Victor had shown it to him Yuri had made sure to announce how stupid he thought it was. Since the words were in English it was clear that whoever Victor’s soulmate would be they didn’t speak Russian. Still though, Yuri couldn’t help but feel envious, he saw the way that Victor would caress the words on his arm. He saw Victor’s lips move silently as he spoke the words to himself with a loving look in his eyes. He saw the look on Victor’s face at the banquet when that stupid loser Yuuri Katsuki announced that his family owned a hot spring and he wanted Victor to be his coach. 

So really Yuri was not surprised when Victor went to Japan. He was just pissed that Victor had forgotten his promise so easily, all because his stupid soulmate had revealed themselves. Yuri was really really pissed off, and that’s the only reason he couldn’t figure out to fake the ‘agape’ that Victor wanted him to express with his short program. 

“Hmm, something isn’t right here.” Victor says thoughtfully as he calls Yuri to a stop. Yuri is tired and feeling frustrated, no matter how many times he goes through the program Victor still tells him he’s doing it wrong.

“I’m doing it like you showed me, aren’t I?” Yuri snaps.

“The way you currently are, your greed is too obvious. There’s no sense of the agape, the unconditional love. It’s good to have confidence, but this program isn’t where you should show it off.”

“Huh? You’re the one who’s skated with complete confidence this whole time! Well, what’s agape to you, then, Victor!?”

“It’s a feeling, of course, so I could never explain it in words.” Victor’s got that stupid smile on his face again and Yuri really really really wants to hit him. “Do you bother thinking about that when you skate? You’re funny, Yurio. Well, Maybe we need a temple.” 

Yuri really has no idea what’s happening anymore. He goes to the temple like Victor instructs him to and he gets hit by the weird monk dude but it doesn’t help him figure out agape at all. He soaks in the hot spring afterwards with Yuri and while it helps ease the soreness but it also means that he has to take his wrist cuff off. As a child Yuri was always mocked for his lack of a proper soulmark. He was called a freak and beaten by the other kids. Soulless, they called him. Yuri learned quickly that he needed to cover the little scribbles on his wrist and so he did. He wore a black leather wrist cuff almost constantly, he had even taken to sleeping with it on. The only time he really had to take it off was during competitions where he could still hide it with long sleeves or when he was around water, like right now and he and Yuuri sat side by side in the steaming water. He could see the dark black ink of his scribble standing in stark contrast to his pale skin. He wished that he could scrub it off.

He considers the older man beside him. Yuuri had seemed excited about the agape composition when Victor had first played the music for them. Surely he must have an idea of what Agape means, and he’d probably be less annoying about giving an answer than his stupid soulmate was. Yuri doesn’t want to give in though, why should he need someone else to help him now when he’s been fine on his own for all these years. He’s still tempted though, that is until Victor comes out to the bath asking them to take pictures of him. At dinner, Yuri realized that Yuuri seems to be having just as much trouble with Eros as he is with agape and decides that he isn’t going to ask for help. He’s not some useless loser like the other Yuuri. He can figure out agape. 

They keep training every day, over and over again Yuri skates the program and again and again Victor tells him that he’s not good enough. Yuri yells and he stomps and he throws things. He watches Victor and Yuuri flirt with each other and it makes him sick. 

“I’m gonna kill him” Yuri spits out some water that got into his mouth when he spoke. The waterfall was icy and the stupid clothes that Victor forced him to wear are completely soaked through and heavy.

“Why me, too?” Yuuri whines from beside him. 

“Who cares? Damn it.” Yuri grumbles, “Who cares about agape? Forget all of them.”

“What?” Yuuri turns his head a bit to look at the young man beside him. Yuri ignores him and keeps staring ahead. He’s sure now that any answer he gets from Yuuri will be useless, after all what kind of idiot thinks of pork cutlet bowls when they think of sexy. 

The cold water bites into his skin and he tries to think of what his agape could be, with no soulmate out there waiting for him; it's not something Yuri had ever thought about. He stares at the scribble on his wrist now and thinks back to the incident that made him cover it. The other kids at his practice had been picking on him. They had purposely bumped into him on the ice and pushed him in the changing room. Yuri had been upset until he saw that his grandfather had come to the practice. His mom never came to see him practice but his grandpa was there and he was proud of how well Yuri had done.

Being yanked out of the waterfall by Yuuri shocks him back into reality. He knows what it is now. He knows that it doesn’t matter if his mom and dad aren’t around, or that he’ll never have a soulmate. His grandpa loves him, his grandpa loves him despite his bad temper and his weird habits. That’s what his agape is. 

  
  


***

In the middle of his program Yuri loses his sense of agape. He knows that he’s failed and when he hears Victor call out to him he just feels more like a failure. As he exits the ice he can see Yuuri off to the side, he seems to be freaking out and Yuri starts to consider saying something when Victor gets to him first. 

“Yuuri, It’s your turn.” Victor says to him. Yuuri gasps and covers his mouth as he stares at Victor. Yuri thinks its stupid. Even though Yuuri tends to be more conservative and usually keeps his wrist hidden, Yuri has seen the script etched into his skin. He even recognizes Victor’s handwriting. Yuri almost considers it cheating that Victor went and reminded Yuuri of their bond right before he goes out onto the ice. After all they already had their moment back at the banquet. When they hug Yuri decides that it’s time for him to leave. He already knows that he lost and there’s no point in hanging around this stupid town just for that stupid piggy to rub it in his face. He’s almost to the door when Yuuri’s program starts and he decides to stop and watch, just in case. After all, Yuuri might fail horribly anyway.

In the end Katsuki wins anyway. Yuri hurries out of the rink with the sound of applause at his back. He brought his suitcase with him because he was prepared for this. When Yuko stops him on the way out Yuri almost considers staying but he knows that his place isn’t here. He’ll return to Russia and continue to train under Yakov. He’ll prove to them all that the only person he needs is himself.

***

Yuri really can’t stand Mira. The old hag is always such a bitch and because of her he ends up getting scolded by Yakov again. 

“Who is this hag?” Yuri grumbles when Yakov brings the older woman over to meet him. She grabs onto his face and right away begins to talk about all his flaws. Yuri wonders if its too late for him to sneak out and skip practice for the day.

“I will choreograph your free program.” She declares after releasing him. Once again Yuri is left not entirely sure what’s going on. “First, I’ve decided on your next goal. Become this season’s principal-- No, Prima ballerina.” 

Yuri knows that he’s always looked feminine always been known as Russia's fairy. He used to hate it, but the confidence in this woman’s voice doesn’t make him feel self conscious about this. 

“If you are willing to sell your soul to win.” Suddenly Yuri realizes that he’s never been more sure of anything in his life. He’s going to win during his senior debut. He’ll do anything to win and what does it matter if he sells his soul? It’s not like he has another half anywhere out there waiting for him. 

“If selling my soul is all it takes to win, I’ll give you my whole body, no holds barred.”

“I am Lilia Baranovskaya. Go home immediately and pack up your things. You’ll be living with me from now on to practice. With Yakov, too” 

Yuri’s not sure what’s happening at this moment. But he knows that he’ll go along with whatever she tells him to do. One way or another he’ll prove to the world that the boy with no soulmate is better than all of them.

***

When the assignments come out Yuri knows that he’s ready. He’ll face off against that stupid pig Katsuki and this time he’ll be better. This time he knows that he’ll win for sure.

***

During Skate america Mira makes Yuri stop practicing and forces him to watch with her. She claims that it's important for him to know his competition and she refuses to acknowledge any of his arguments so he begrudgingly agrees. He surprises himself by getting really into it when the skater from Kazakhstan is doing his program. He almost can’t seem to pull his eyes away, and when the skater, Otabek Altin, wins gold he finds himself angry. Anyone with eyes could have seen that Otabek deserved the gold more than stupid Leo. 

***

Skate Canada comes and goes without anything really notable happening. Yuri hates every second of it, that damned Canadian J.J is even more annoying than the love struck Victor and the pig Katsuki combined. Losing to him makes Yuri want to fight but he holds it back, buries the anger inside himself. He’s going to prove them all wrong when the time comes. 

***

Mira makes him watch the cup of china again, to support their rink-mate. Yuri watches closely as Katsuki skates his short program. He can see that the pig hasn’t been slacking either. He breaks his personal best but Yuri knows that he’s nowhere near good enough to beat him. 

Mira tries to include him in the gossip about their rink-mate Georgi's love life but Yuri could care less. What did Georgi expect when he dated someone that wasn’t his soulmate? Yuri would never be so dumb as to fall for someone like that. Someone that has a soulmate out there would never ditch that soulmate for a subpar match. Yuri adjusts his cuff on his wrist and wishes that Mira would leave him alone to his practice. 

Yuri watches on the second day as well and he sees that something has changed with Katsuki. He might just be a stupid pig but he’s evolving too. When Katsuki changes his toe loop for a quad flip Yuri knows that he’s going to still be a challenge to face. He’s got to work harder, got to evolve faster. Yuri thinks he might puke when Victor throws himself into Yuuri’s arms and kisses him on the ice.

***

  
  


The Rostelecom cup is the one that Yuri has been looking forward to the most. He’ll face Yuuri Katsuki on his own home turf and he’ll prove that he can beat him now. He’ll also get to see his grandfather. With him there watching Yuri skate there’s no way that he’ll forget his agape. He’ll be unstoppable.

The Moscow airport is swarming with Yuri’s fanclub the angels and he’s determined not to let them ruin his homecoming. Deciding that his luggage really isn’t that important he leaves Mira in charge of it and sneaks out to the pick up area where his grandpa waits for him. 

Being back in his grandpa’s car and eating his pirozhki makes Yuri feel like he’s finally home. He’d never give up skating but he truly does miss living with his grandpa. He wonders if he’d ever be able to convince him to leave Moscow and come to live with Yuri in St petersburg. For some reason though as he eats the pirozhki he finds himself thinking about the pork cutlet bowl he shared with the other Yuuri and Victor in japan. 

He spends the day with his grandfather. Eating more Pirozhki than he really should with his diet regiment and visiting some of the places that he loved as a child. He hasn’t been back here for an actual visit in a long time. When he moved to St Petersburg to live with Yakov all he was concerned about was being the best. He thinks back on it now and he wishes that he’d taken more time to come and visit the old man.

When the day is drawing to and end his grandfather drops him off at the hotel where all the other skaters are staying. Yuri feels more tired than normal and really he just wants to get into his room and take a long shower before he falls into his bed. Yakov will certainly be waking him up early tomorrow. Sadly his chances of getting any rest are ruined as soon as he walks into the lobby. Victor is being interviewed by a crowd of journalists and when he spots Yuri he just has to pull him into it. 

Pissed off, Yuri knocks the idiot wannabe coaches coffee out of his hand. There’s a commotion from the area of the elevators and Yuri decides to go investigate it, ignoring the questions called out to him by the reporters and Victor’s whining. He sees that the commotion is coming from some of the other skaters and he considers avoiding them too when he spots Yuuri sneaking onto an elevator away from the rest. Suddenly finding just a bit more energy Yuri hurries over and sticks his foot into the elevator door before it can close.

“Why are you sneaking around?” 

“Yurio… Good to see you again” Yuuri actually looks happy to see him and it for some reason it pisses Yuri off more. They’re supposed to be rivals. Katsuki shouldn’t be happy to see him, stupid pig. They ride the elevator together in silence for a moment until Yuuri decides to speak again.

“Um, Good luck to both of us in the Rostelecom cup” Yuuri says, he’s clearly trying to break the tension but there’s no way Yuri is going to allow that.

“Huh? You’ll suffer a miserable defeat here in Moscow.” Yuri has already figured out exactly how to get Yuuri riled up. The stupid pig is so easy. “I’m going to have Victor stay in Russia.” 

He can see it right away on Katsuki’s face that the words have gotten to him. At moments like these Yuri is glad that he doesn’t have a soulmate. It means that he doesn’t have any stupid weaknesses to hold him back. The only person he’s worried about is himself and his grandpa. Katsuki doesn’t speak for the rest of the elevator ride and is clearly still lost in thought as he makes his way to his hotel room. 

Yuri’s not sure why he does it, but when he gets to his room he decides to look at the current rankings for the Grand Prix. He realizes that the skater that he’d been so captivated by earlier in the season had made his way into the first place. Otabek Altin was guaranteed a spot in the finals after winning the NHK Trophy. Yuri remembers Mira pestering him to watch the NHK Trophy but he had insisted that he had to practice. She’d given up easily for once. Now he regrets it. He starts to search the internet for a recording of Otabek but stops himself. There’s no reason for him to do it after all. Otabek’s skating has nothing to do with him. Yuri is going to win no matter what. 

As Katsuki’s turn comes around Yuri notices that his grandpa hasn’t shown up yet. He wonders if maybe his grandpa is not going to come at all. Katsuki’s name is called and Yuri turns his attention to the Japanese skater and his coach, he thinks he might puke again when he sees Yuuri pull Victor close by his necktie to whisper into his ear. The stupid piggy is using Victor’s popularity and their soul-bond to boost his own performance. 

Yuri prepares to take the ice after Katsuki, his grandfather isn’t coming. He knows already that it's going to affect his agape. He won’t let that stop him though, he’s still going to win. Victor and Katsuki cheer him on from the sidelines as they act all lovey dovey in the kiss and cry. Yuri wants to punch them both. He can feel his heart pounding in his chest. He sees Victor press a kiss to the stupid pigs skate and all the anger he’s been suppressing lately seems to bubble in his stomach threatening to burst out. 

He falls on his first triple axel and Yuri’s anger grows. He wants to throw a tantrum, Wants to yell and hit someone. He can’t right now. Right now he has to feel agape, has to show everyone his agape. Somewhere in the recesses of his memory he sees a pair of dark eyes staring at him in wonder. He brushes the memory aside and pushes on.

The program ends and Yuri knows he’s messed up. His anger is right on the surface now threatening to break through, a pair of cat ears lands perfectly on his head and he thinks that things can’t get any worse. That is, until he sees J.J standing at the gate with a smug look on his face. Yuri is definitely going to punch this bastard. He feels a hand on his arm, warm and strong. When he looks no one else is beside him. Yuri shakes his head to clear it and then pushes JJ aside as he makes his way to the kiss and cry where Yakov and Lilia wait for him. He wonders if maybe he’s going crazy. 

Yuri’s score puts him in second behind the stupid pig. He needs to do something to get this anger out of his system. As they’re heading out for the night Yuri sees Victor and Katsuki arguing about something. Yuri’s about to make fun of them for having a lovers spat when suddenly Victor is clinging onto Yakov and asking him to be Yuuri’s coach for a day. Yuri knows that this is his chance. Without Victory there to cheer him on Yuuri will be a mess. Yuri isn’t happy about it though. He wanted to face off against Katsuki at his best. 

***

Victor has actually gone back to japan and if Katsuki’s performance during practice was anything to go by he’ll be easy to beat. Yuri feels cheated. He’s worried it’s going to affect his own performance when he realizes that Yakov has been speaking to him. When he hears that his grandpa is outside he rushes out to meet him. 

Yuri loves his grandpa, he loves him so much. He missed the short program yesterday because he wasn’t feeling well and yet here he is now with a brand new pork cutlet bowl Piroshki. He made it especially for Yuri. His grandpa tells him to eat them and to do well in his free skate and Yuri fully intends to make him proud. Screw that dumb pork cutlet bowl Katsuki. His performance isn’t what matters. All that matters is Yuri winning and making his grandpa proud. 

***

“Hey, Yakov.”

“What?”

“I’m changing the jump composition.” Yuri walks through the parted curtain and keeps his eyes trained straight ahead. “I’ll reduce the number of jumps in the first half from four to two.”

“So you’ll have six in the second half?”

“That’s right.”

“Do you have a death wish?” 

“I can’t win against J.J or Yuuri otherwise.” Yuri has already agreed to sell his soul for this win. He’ll do anything it takes. Maybe he’ll pay for it one day, but that doesn’t matter. He’s going to win gold.

Yuri doesn’t remember much of his free skate. He finds himself kneeling on the ice, his body exhausted. Again he sees just a flash of dark eyes looking up at them. He finds the energy and pulls himself up and skates off the ice. 

At the end of the day Yuuri is wandering around like a zombie, hugging anyone that gets near him. Yuri tries to flee from him, he knows that the stupid pig is feeling lost because he’s not with his soulmate for once. Yuri almost feels bad for the idiot. Feeling in a good mood for once he gets the pork cutlet piroshki that his grandfather made him and sets out in search of the pig, he’s being gracious for once, if he feels like giving the idiot a good kick for messing up his program then really it's all fair. After all it’s not like he wants dumb pork cutlet bowl to get any ideas about them being friends. He’s just showing off how awesome his grandpa is too.

***

Barcelona at last. Yuri is ready to show them all that he’s the best. When they arrive the hotel is packed and Yuri is tired. He wants to just sneak away but Lilia stops him just long enough that his fans manage to catch him and force him into photo ops. To make matters worse JJ shows up and his girlfriend insults Yuri and his fans. Yuri might not like his fans either but that doesn’t give anyone else the right to insult them.

“Any guy who wears sunglasses on his head is scum.” Yuri declares as he points an accusatory finger at J.J. “Find someone better, Ugly-ass bitch!” 

“Scary!” She cries out as she tucks herself behind J.J’s back. For some reason that just pisses Yuri off more. 

“Hey, don’t get so worked up.” J.J is obviously trying to diffuse the situation but its so rare these days for Yuri to have a place to unleash his anger that he doesn’t really give a shit. He’s ready to fight the annoying Canadian. “Otabek!” J.J yells suddenly “Where are you going?”. Yuri’s sure it’s just a tactic to get away but he can’t help it. He turns to look for the Kazakh skater.

Otabek is heading for the doors but at J.J’s calls he stops and removes his glasses as he turns to face them. 

“Out to eat.” He says simply. Yuri finds that he can’t move for some reason. His heart is racing a million miles a minute in his chest.

“Eating alone?” J.J asks “You’re still an odd one, huh” 

“Want to join us for dinner?” J.J is still trying to escape, Yuri’s sure of it. This is the point where he should say something. Accuse J.J of being a coward, of running away. He should, but it seems as though all of his anger has just been blown away. 

“Thanks, but I’ll pass.” Otabek’s eyes shift from JJ to Yuri and he stares at him thoughtfully. Yuri knows those eyes, somehow, he’s sure of it. There’s too much going around him right now. JJ is saying something, and their fans are arguing in the background. Yuri mentally shakes off whatever it is that he’s feeling right now and glares back at Otabek. 

“Huh? What’s with you, asshole?” he growls. Otabek says nothing, he turns away from Yuri and heads out of the hotel. Yuri isn’t sure why, but as soon as those eyes are off him he feels a sense of loss. He hurries to find Yakov and get his room key. He needs to take a shower and shake off whatever just happened.

***

Yuri is pissed off and a little bit scared, not that he’d admit it. He just wanted to relax and get some shopping in while he had the chance after practice but his stupid fans had found him and now his only choice was to spend the day trying to escape them. He slips down an alleyway and presses himself up against the wall to try and catch his breath. How is it that they have more stamina than him?

“Where’s Yurochka?” one of them yells. They’re way too close still for his liking. “We’re about to have a fan meeting.”

“I can smell Yurochka! It’s coming from over here!” 

“Oh, this hair is Yurochka’s!” Yuri is feeling seriously creeped out at this point and really really angry. Why can’t they just leave him alone? He’s definitely going to snap on them when he’s found. The rumble of a motorcycle engine pulls him from his thoughts as a bike comes to a stop beside him. 

“Yuri, get on.” It’s Otabek. Yuri’s stomach does a weird little flip as he looks at the man in front of him. 

“Huh? You’re…” 

“There’s Yurochka!” Yuri is interrupted by the scream of one of his fans and he realizes too late that he’s stepped out of his hiding spot. Otabek takes off his sunglasses, his dark eyes seem to stare right into Yuri.

“Huh? No way! It’s Otabek Altin from Kazakhstan!”

“Huh? What?” Yuri’s not sure what’s going on. He doesn’t know why Otabek is there or even how he found him. A helmet is tossed into his hands and out of instinct he catches it. He’s never been on a motorcycle before.

“Are you coming or not?” Otabek asks as he puts his glasses back on. Yuri can still feel Otabek’s eyes on him. Something about that gaze makes Yuri feel safe and despite his reservations he finds himself climbing onto the back of the bike. Otabek gives him a moment to get a good grip and then he’s taking off down the alley away from the fans. Yuri holds onto the seat of the bike, nervous for some reason about getting too close to the man in front of him. He doesn’t understand what’s going on right now at all.

As they leave the alleys and move onto the street the bike hits a bump and Yuri feels his butt leave the seat, before he can panic though Otabek’s hand has wrapped around his wrist and he pulls Yuri forward, somehow without either of them speaking Yuri knows what it is Otabek is telling him. He wraps his arms around the older man's waist and shifts closer. The last thing he needs right now is an injury after all. 

Yuri isn’t sure where it is that Otabek intends to take him, he considers it but finds that he doesn’t really care. He doesn’t mind being on the back of the bike, pressed close to the other skater. Otabek’s shoulders are broad and Yuri ducks down a bit to hide his face from the wind and despite not really having planned to, he finds himself resting his head against Otabek’s back. He feels comfortable like this. He thinks that if he was actually a cat he might even purr right at this moment. When the bike does finally come to a stop Yuri peels himself off Otabek reluctantly and for the first time he looks around at their surroundings. 

Otabek has taken them to the park Guell municipal gardens. Before Yuri can ask what they’re doing there he notices that Otabek has started to walk up the stairs and hurriedly takes off the helmet before catching up with him. Neither of them speak until they’ve reached the top. There Otabek leans against the wall and looks out at the city stretched in front of them. Yuri follows his lead and does the same. 

“You don’t remember me.” Otabek states. There’s a hint of sadness in his voice that Yuri doesn’t quite understand, but its stated as a fact and not a question so he watches Altin and waits for him to elaborate. “Five years ago we trained together at Yakov’s summer camp in ST Petersburg.” 

“Really?” Yuri asks as he turns to face Otabek more fully. The other man nods his head and keeps his eyes focused on the horizon. 

“I don’t remember that!” Yuri is sure that he would have remembered Otabek. How could he forget him?

“At the time, I was in my first year in the junior division. But I couldn’t keep up with the Russian junior skaters, so I was put in the novice class. That’s where I met you.” Yuri studies Otabek’s face as he speaks. He tries to probe his memories for anything about Otabek but it doesn’t work. He focuses on his eyes instead, Yuri is sure that they’re the eyes he saw when he was on the ice. “Yuri Plisetsky had the unforgettable eyes of a soldier.”

“A soldier? Me?” Otabek’s memories of Yuri seem to focus on his eyes as well. Yuri feels his heart racing in his chest and he tries to ignore it. No matter how much of a crush he might be developing there’d be no point pursuing it. One day Otabek will find his soulmate and Yuri would just be left behind. Yuri tries to think back to that time period, he wants to remember Otabek. “I had just moved my home rink from Moscow to St. Petersburg. I was desperate. I’d decided that I wouldn’t complain until I was good enough.”

“After that camp, I moved around to train, from Russia to the US and then to Canada. I only managed to return to my home rink in Almaty last year.” Yuri had enough trouble moving from Moscow to St. Petersburg. He couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to move to a new country with a new culture while still training. “Now, more than ever, I want to win the championship for Kazakhstan.”

Otabek’s body tenses while he talks about winning and Yuri remembers hearing rumors about Otabek having no interest in interacting with the other skaters. He doesn’t get why Otabek saved him today, or why they’re standing here talking like this. He pushes himself away from the wall and steps closer to the older man. Somewhere deep inside he feels something pulling him towards the other skater but he doesn’t want to push any boundaries.

“Otabek, why did you talk to me? I’m a rival, aren’t I?” Yuri asks. Otabek seems to hesitate before he speaks, Yuri can sense that he’s picking his words carefully.

“I’ve always thought we were alike. That’s all.” For the first time since they arrived Otabek turns to look at him, the sunlight hits his face in just the right way and Yuri can see now that his eyes aren’t as dark as they’d appeared to be. They’re a golden brown and Yuri can feel himself getting lost in that gaze. But he can see a sadness in them that he doesn’t understand. “Are you going to become friends with me or not?” 

Yuri is stunned into silence, he doesn’t know what it is that’s happening between himself and Otabek but he’s never been asked to be someone's friend before and it leaves him with a warm and fuzzy feeling in his stomach. When Otabek’s hand reaches out yuri doesn’t hesitate to grab it. He wants to be close to Otabek. Even if it just means being friends with him. There’s a smile on Otabek’s face as they shake hands but Yuri still can’t shake the feeling that he’s missed something.

The two new friends leave the park together on the back of the motorcycle. Yuri presses closer than he really needs to, he figures he’ll just claim to have been afraid if Otabek asks him, or maybe that he’s cold. Now that the sun has gone down fully his light jacket doesn’t offer much warmth and Otabek’s body seems to radiate heat. 

They didn’t really make any plans for what to do when they left the park, and at first Yuri was worried that they’d end up back at the hotel but instead Otabek seems to read his mind once again and they end up in some sort of shopping district. Even from their parking spot Yuri can see a shop with a tiger print jacket in the window of it. Excitedly he tosses both his own helmet and Otabek’s onto the bike and grabs the other man's hand before running to the shop. 

They spend the evening like that, going from store to store until they all start to close down. A few times Yuri thinks that he might be annoying Otabek, he offers to do something else but Otabek just gives him an amused smile and tells him that he’s enjoying himself. He doesn’t talk much but Yuri doesn’t mind that. He talks on and on, telling Otabek everything about his life that he can think of. He even finds himself gossiping about his rink mates romances and about the time he spent in japan with Victor and Katsuki. They end up at a cafe sitting across from each other and sipping at their drinks while Yuri keeps talking. He tells Otabek about his grandfather and his Piroshki. Otabek rests his chin in the palm of his hand and gives Yuri his full attention. He never takes out his phone to check it or looks away absently. The warm fuzzy feeling that started in Yuri’s stomach has spread through his whole body now and he feels like he’s practically vibrating now. He’s never felt this connected to anyone. 

He notices that Otabek keeps one of his gloves on even indoors and he wants to ask about it, but he knows that the glove is probably covering Otabek’s soul-mark and the last thing he wants to do right now is hear Otabek talk about his soulmate. 

In general the whole night has gone amazing, better than Yuri ever expected. Or at least it was until Victor and that stupid pork cutlet bowl showed up and ruined everything. He’s not really sure how it happened but Victor managed to manipulate them both into going to dinner. If it wasn’t bad enough, its no just those two but Katsuki’s sister and teacher person are coming along and on the way to the restaurant they run into Phichit and Chris. Yuri wishes he could rewind the night back to when it was just him and Otabek but he’s not sure how to get out of there without being rude and he doesn’t want Otabek thinking he’s an asshole or anything so he just stays quiet and endures it. When stupid pigs sister starts crying at the table and scoots his chair just a tad closer to Otabek’s and glances towards him. Otabek meets his gaze and smirks just a bit. Yuri thinks his heart might have just melted. He has to say something quick or he’ll go crazy. 

“Why did we all have to get together?” He asks, glaring daggers at Victor. Katsuki’s sister sobs louder and Yuri moves even closer to Otabek. He can see the sparkle of amusement in his new friends eyes and he wants to pout but then the waitress is there taking their orders and he finds himself arguing with Yuuri and victor, but he’s also enjoying himself. At one point he leaned over the table to yell at Victor and because of their close proximity Otabek had to move his arm out of the way and placed it on the back of Yuri’s chair for a good ten minutes at least. Yuri is glad that they’re outside so he can blame his reddening face on the cold. 

“Still, it’s kind of weird for us all to be here like this before the final starts.” Katsuki says as they’re all beginning to dig into their food. “At last year’s final, I was always by myself, even at the banquet. I couldn’t even talk to Victor.” Everyone pauses a bit to look over at him as Victor spits out his beer. 

“Yuri, you don’t remember?” Victor asks frantically. Everyone here clearly remembers the banquet from last year but Yuri thinks he may be the only one who actually understands the exchange that Victor and Yuuri had. He wonders how that stupid pig man could possibly have forgotten his first exchange with his soulmate.

“What?” Yuuri asks. 

“Yuri, you got drunk on champagne and started dancing.” Chris tells him, grinning. With how long Chris and Victor have known each other, Yuri suspects that Chris may have been aware of what really happened that night as well. “Everyone saw it.”

“Huh?!” Yuuri yells as a total look of panic takes over his face. 

“That was disgusting as hell.” Yuri growls remembering the night. “I was dragged into a dance-off and got humiliated, too!”

“A dance-off? With Yurio?” katsuki looks so shocked that he might faint.

“I did mine with a pole dance, half-naked.” Chris says fondly. He was really more than half naked. Left only in his tiny underwear by the end of it.

“I still have videos of what happened.” Victor seems to be strangely calm about this whole thing. How could he be so calm when he just found out that his soulmate might not know they’re soulmates. Yuri tilts his head a bit as he thinks about it. This whole time he thought that they were so lovey-dovey because they knew. Was Yuuri just so in love that he chose to ignore the soul-bond or did he just sense that he and Victor were supposed to be together. Yuri twists his cuff around his wrist a bit as he thinks. It’s not like his wrist is bare after all. What if his scribble did mean something? What if he had a soulmate out there and he could figure out who his soulmate really was despite not having a proper soul-mark.

“I do, Too.” Chris declares as he pulls out his phone. “I have tons of photos.” 

“Wait, What?” Phitchit holds onto the phone, his finger wrapping around Chris’s hand as he looks through the pictures. “Yuri, that’s so dirty.” he declares.

“I want to see!” Mari and Minako say in tandem as the slide over to look at Chris’s phone. Yuri is still twisting the cuff around his wrist when a hand is placed on top of his. He pauses and turns his head to look at Otabek. Otabek smiles softly at him then removes his hand. Yuri picks up a fork and plays with his food a bit when Chris speaks up again.

“What’s with the right, you two?” he asks. Katsuki freezes for just a moment and then both he and Victor are showing off the matching gold rings on their hands.

“They’re a matching pair!” Victor announces proudly. Phichit’s eyes light up and he leaps from his chair clapping.

“Congrats on your marriage!” He yells loud enough for the whole restaurant to hear. Yuuri tries to stop him but he isn’t loud enough to be heard over his friend. “Everyone! My good friend here got married!”

The whole restaurant claps for them and Yuuri stands up trying to speak but too flustered to say anything that makes sense. Yuri isn’t sure if he’s just shocked or disgusted. The two love birds are definitely disgusting. Beside him, Otabek claps along with the rest of the crowd.

“Yeah, don’t get the wrong idea.” Victor raises his hand and the whole place quiets almost instantly as he flashes his ring. “This is an engagement ring. We’ll get married once he wins a gold medal. Right, Yuri?”

“What? V...Victor” Yuuri is clearly shocked by this declaration but at the mention of the gold metal the attitude of the whole table changes. It’s a sobering reminder that while they might all sit here acting friendly they’re enemies. All of them are determined to win gold for their own reasons and Victor’s careless declaration reminded them all of that.

“A gold…” Otabek mutters.

“Medal?” Phitchit finishes for him. Everyone is pissed now. Yuri is close enough now that he can feel Otabek’s muscles flex under the leather of his jacket and he’s maybe a little less pissed. 

“Wait a second!” A voice they all dread hearing yells out. That bastard JJ and his ugly bitch girlfriend have somehow managed to find them. “JJ will be the one who wins gold and gets married, of course!” 

“That’s right, It’ll definitely be JJ” 

“Sorry we can’t congratulate you on that future marriage.” Without saying a word the whole group comes to an agreement. Dropping money on the table for payment they all head out making excuses of having to get up early tomorrow as they go. Yuri notices that Otabek stays close to him even though they’re walking as a group now and it makes that warm feeling come back. He imagines himself reaching out to grasp Otabek’s hand and realizing that he was actually about to do it; he shoves his hands as deep in the pockets as they’ll go.

***

Yuri barely sleeps. He lays in his bed and stares at the ceiling as the previous day plays out in his head. He thinks about the warmth of Otabek’s body pressed against his own, the smell of his cologne mixing with the leather of his jacket. His lips curving up in a smile. Yuri’s sure that he’s gone insane. Quietly so as not to alert Yakov and Lilia in the next room over he gets out of bed and pulls on some clothes and his tennis shoes. The sun is up early today and he plans to take advantage of it, he hasn’t really had a chance to go for a run outside since he left japan. 

Along the beach he spots Victor standing on the sidewalk with his hand stretched out towards the sun. The ring on his finger sparkles in the early morning light. Seeing his chance Yuri sneaks up behind him and then kicks him in the back. Victor barely budges, so the young man keeps kicking.

“Victor Nikiforov is dead!” he declares. Victor turns around to face him. “Why do you look so happy to be looking after that damn pig?” Yuri really doesn’t understand it. If Yuuri didn’t know that he and Victor were soulmates then why did he just continue on without telling him. Victor’s lips turn up just the slightest bit as he leans down to Yuri’s height. 

“Did you want to compete against me?” he asks.

“Don’t be so full of yourself. Not all skaters look up to you. Just go away already, geezer.” Victor stands up straight and grabs Yuri’s face pulling him up as well. Yuri is embarrassed that he has to stand on his tiptoes. He’s tired and confused and so despite his disadvantage he decides to keep pushing. 

“The ring you got from that pig is garbage.” He can feel the cold ring pressing into his cheek. “I’ll win just to prove how incompetent his owner is.” 

Victor lets out a low chuckle and Yuri uses it as a chance to push his hand away.

“Let me go!” He and Victor both move away from each other as a dog barks down on the beach below them. Victor seems content to just stay and continue watching the water so he starts to walk away. He’s surprised when he looks up and sees the already familiar form of Otabek sitting on his bike. Yuri’s heart races and he wants to rush over but he’s not quite done with Victor yet. He turns back to face him.

“This place reminds me of Hasetsu’s ocean.” He admits. Victor smiles at that.

“I thought that, too.” He says. 

Yuri walks over to Otabek and stands in front of him with his hands in his pockets. Otabek is leaning casually against his bike. The two stare at each other for what feels like eternity. Yuri has a million questions. How did Otabek know he’d be out here? Why did Otabek come looking for him so early in the morning? Why did he just stay back here instead of coming over. 

Otabek doesn’t say a word. He holds out a second helmet and Yuri takes it. There will be plenty of time for questions later. He doesn’t understand what he’s feeling right now but he knows that once he’s on the back of Otabek’s bike he’ll feel better. He puts the helmet on and then slides onto the bike behind his friend. He doesn’t hesitate this time to wrap his arms around Otabek’s waist and holds him tightly. Hiding his face in the smooth leather jacket. Otabek puts his hand over Yuri’s for just a moment and then he’s starting his bike and driving away. Yuri doesn’t have to look to know that Victor definitely saw them. He presses closer to Otabek and feels himself start to relax. The tension that had built up inside him overnight melts away again and he tries not to think about the fact that he’s pretty sure it's Otabek’s presence that’s making him feel this way. 

They should go back to the hotel and get ready. There’s not much time until the warm ups start and they both need to be there. They aren’t heading towards the rink though and Yuri is strangely okay with that. He tangles his fingers in Otabek’s shirt to protect them from the cold and smiles to himself. Otabek glances back at him and then pulls to the side of the road and stops the bike. Yuri loosens his grip but only by a bit. 

“You’re cold.” Otabek states. 

“Psh barely. You’re like a giant heater.” Yuri rolls his eyes and leans against Otabek’s back again, closing his eyes. “How’d you know where to find me?”

“When?”

“Just now duh. Well yesterday too. You rescued me from those fan girls.”

“I don’t know. I just found you.” Otabek shrugs then takes his gloves off his own hands. He untangles Yuri’s hands from the fabric of his shirt and puts the gloves on him. Yuri can feel his face warm but he stays still. They’re just gloves but something about Otabek putting them on for him feels weirdly intimate. The gloves are too big on his hands but they’re still warm and it makes Yuri’s stomach do a weird little flip again. 

“Warm ups will start soon.” he mumbles, hoping that Otabek won’t hear him. 

“They will. Are you ready to go?” 

“I guess we don’t really have a choice huh.” 

“There’s always a choice.” Otabek places Yuri’s hands back on his stomach and then starts the bike again. Yuri tightens his grip and smiles as they head towards the rink. He’s sure that when they get there Otabek’s hands will be frozen stiff.

***

. The warm up goes by smoothly. Yuri and Otabek were both too late to change before hand and afterwards they have to hurry to the changing rooms. Yuri tries not to think too much as he slips into his costume in one of the stalls. Otabek is changing in the next stall over and if he doesn’t control himself then Yuri’s sure that he’ll get too distracted. When he steps out he walks into Otabek and almost falls back. The other skater reacts quickly and reaches out, wrapping his arm around Yuri’s waist and pulling him against his chest. Yuri thinks he might faint. He holds onto Otabek’s shirt and wonders how long he can get away with staying right there. 

“They’ll be waiting for us.” Otabek’s voice is low and his lips are near Yuri’s ear. That stupid piggy Katsuki gets to hug Victor all the time before he goes onto the ice. Yuri deserves a hug too. Instead of moving away he wraps his arms around Otabek and hugs him tight. Otabek chuckles and holds him. Yuri thinks that just maybe he might be a little bit in love. 

Reluctantly the two of them separate. Otabek touches his hand lightly to Yuri’s cheek and then he heads out to watch the others. Yuri takes a few deep breaths before he goes to take his place by Yakov. His cheek still feels warm. Yuri has missed Katsuki’s routine and he doesn’t really care too much. Both the stupid pig and Victor are still hogging the kiss and cry as Phichit’s program comes to an end so he takes this opportunity to kick them both off of the bench and onto the ground.

As he takes to the Ice Yuri’s eyes scan the room but he doesn’t spot Otabek anywhere. It doesn’t matter though. He can still feel Otabek’s hand on his cheeks. The gloves still sit in the pocket of his jacket. His grandfather is at home cheering for him. Yuri will show them all.

Before he even really knows what’s happening the program is over. In a daze Yuri skates off the ice and takes his place in the kiss and cry with Yakov and Lilia. When the announcement comes that he’s broken Victor’s record he thinks that he might actually be dreaming. 

Chris skates and then it’s Otabek’s turn. Yuri makes sure that he’s able to get to a seat quickly before he misses any of it. He puts his feet up on the seat in front of him and ignores the looks that the other skaters give him. When he sees Otabek on the ice he can’t help but call out to him.

“Davai!” he calls out. Otabek looks up instantly, his eyes meeting Yuri as he gives him a thumbs up. The small exchange makes his heart beat harder in his chest and he feels giddy. He should have gotten a friend sooner, though something tells him that no other friend could make him feel the way Otabek does. Yuri tries to sit still as he watches Otabek skate. He hears the girl sitting near him mention Otabek and decides to focus on the other skaters conversation for once.

“Otabek wasn’t very memorable in the past, but… He’s completely different now.” Sara says thoughtfully. Yuri tilts his head just a bit and examines the man on the ice, when did that change happen? What made him change? Could it have been like Yuuri? Did his skating change when he met his soulmate? The thought makes Yuri feel a bit nauseous and he shakes it from his head. Surely Otabek would have mentioned a soulmate at some point. He must not have met them yet. 

“He was nobody until the junior division.” Yuri keeps his eyes trained on Otabek, watching his every move. He met Otabek ten years ago, he had plenty of memories from that time so why wasn’t Otabek one of them? 

_‘Otabek, why are you embarrassed?’_ Yuri looks around him to see who spoke but doesn’t see anyone. He knows that voice. He knows those words. He closes his eyes tight and he tries to remember. He can see himself in the ballet studio with other kids. They’re at the barre, the boy beside him is older, he’s struggling. He looks at Yuri with rich chocolate brown eyes. He loses his footing and he stumbles forward into Yuri’s space, but Yuri doesn’t have time for people. He pushes the boy aside. 

_‘Move loser’ he barks in English. He’s small and his voice is soft but he knows that being nice will get him nowhere. The boy with the chocolate brown eyes falls down but he doesn’t cry like the other kids would. He kneels on the ground and glares up at Yuri with determination in his eyes._

_‘_ _Joq’ the boy stands up and takes his position once again. No matter how badly he does, or how much the other kids tease him, the boy does not give up. Yuri likes that about him. After their lessons for the day he approaches the other boy and stands in front of him._

_‘Tell me your name.’ ten year old Yuri demands._

_‘Otabek. Your soul-mark, show me.” Otabek’s English is terrible, Yuri’s is worse if you don’t count insults._

_‘Stay in the studio today Beka.’ Yuri orders in Russian, ‘I will make sure you don’t fall on me again… I’m Yuri’_

_‘Yuri’_

“Yuri did you hear me?” Katsuki asks. Yuri waves him off too focused on the ice. On Otabek, no Beka. 

Otabek scores a new personal best, he beats Katsuki but Yuri remains in first place. He wonders if it would seem odd for him to go greet Otabek at the kiss and cry, maybe he should wait for the other skater to come to him. He’s not sure why he’s so sure Otabek will come, he just knows that they’re supposed to be next to each other right now. 

J.J’s program gets off to a bad start and only gets worse from there. Everyone is shocked. His program ends with him getting the lowest score and to everyone's annoyance his fans still cheer for him. Yuri covers his ears and complains as loudly as he can to try and drown out the sound. Otabek doesn’t come up to join him and he tries his best not to think about it too hard as they all start to exit. 

Yuri changes back into his street clothes and he gathers his belongings together. There’s no sign of Otabek anywhere now and Yuri’s mood turns sour fast. Yakov tries to yell at him as they make their way outside but Yuri just sticks his headphones in and turns his music on. 

Because of that he almost misses the sound of his name being called, thankfully Lilia nudges him and he looks up in time to see Otabek moving away from some reporters. Yuri feels himself grinning as he hurries towards the other man. Not caring who is watching he leaps into Otabek and wraps his arms around his neck. The skater catches him just like Yuri knew he would and doesn’t even bother to try and get Yuri to stand on his own. 

“Beka you were great.” Yuri tells him with a grin. Otabek stiffens just a bit and then relaxes again, tightening his arms around Yuri’s waist. 

“You too Yura.” He says quietly. Some cameras flash nearby and Yuri remembers where they are. He unwraps his legs from around Otabek’s waist and getting his meaning the older man sets him down. He doesn’t bother to remove his arm from around Yuri’s waist though. Yuri could melt right now and he wouldn’t care. He shouts a hurried goodbye to his coach and then he’s grabbing Otabek’s hand and running out to where they had parked the bike earlier. Otabek follows along behind him without an argument.

Just two days ago Yuri had never ridden on a motorcycle before and now climbing on behind Otabek feels like second nature. He wraps his arms around the older man's waist and just lets himself enjoy the ride this time. When they’re parked at the hotel neither one makes a move to get off the bike. Yuri hooks his chin over Beka’s shoulder and wonders what he should ask about first, or maybe he shouldn’t ask anything. Somehow even just sitting here silently is comfortable. 

“You’re cold” Otabek says. Yuri wants to argue but he’d started shivering a few minutes ago and he can’t help but think about how good a hot shower would feel. 

“You are too.” he says instead. Otabek nods his head just a bit and then gets off the bike. He keeps an arm on Yuri to keep him steady. Instead of standing up as well Yuri swings his leg over so he sits sideways on the bike facing Otabek. 

“We should go inside Yura.”

“I don’t want to go inside yet.”

“You want to get sick before the free skate?”

“No, I want to spend more time with you.” Yuri’s declaration seems to have its desired effect as Otabek’s cheeks flush red. 

“We will have plenty of time together.” 

“When?” Yuri tilts his head to the side curiously, letting some of his hair fall into his face and trying to look as innocent as possible. Otabek chuckles as he reaches out and tucks Yuri’s hair out of his face, his fingers brushing lightly against the younger boy's cheeks. Yuri thinks he might faint again and his heart is beating so fast. 

“We’re friends now Yura. We’ll make time for each other.” Otabek takes Yuri’s hand in his own and pulls him to his feet. “You should have put my gloves back on before we left. Your hands are freezing.” 

“They’re warmer than yours. Come on let's get warm drinks before we go to bed.” Yuri takes off his helmet and then takes Beka’s hand again and heads inside. 

They’re in first and second place now. Yuuri ended up in fourth, he could still turn it around and score better but Yuri’s not worried about that right now. He’s more excited about the idea of sharing the podium with his friend right now. 

  
  


***

That stupid pig Katsuki changed his jump composition to match Victor’s. How his score is ridiculous and Yuri knows that to beat him it will take everything he’s got. He’s going to win. He’s going to show them all that he’s not a freak. As he changes into his costume he takes off his leather cuff and runs his finger over the little scribbles on his wrist. For the first time in a long time he really focuses on it. 

As a child he’d always hated it. But now as he looks, maybe it’s really not as bad as he’d thought. He thinks about all the different types of script he’s seen over the years and he wonders if maybe he was always mistaken. What if his soulmate just has bad handwriting? What if he’s not actually a freak. Screaming erupts from outside and Yuri finishes dressing. He’s not able to watch Otabek’s full program this time. They are stopped in the hallway by victor who takes this time to announce that he’ll be returning to the ice. 

Yuri stands on the side of the ice and watches his new friend’s masterful performance. Their eyes meet each time Otabek turns his way. Yuri takes a deep breath and moves onto the ice when he’s up. 

“Yuri! Davai!” Otabek’s voice rings out over the sound of the audience and Yuri smiles as he returns the thumbs up the older skater had given him yesterday. For the first time in a long time he is fully sure of himself. He knows what he has to do to win.

Yakov, Lilia. Grandpa. Yuko and the rest. Katsuki Yuuri… and Beka. Watch this closely.

Yuri Plisetsky wins gold during his senior debut but just a hair. He can’t help but cry. 

***

After all the overwhelming emotions of the final Yuri really doesn’t want to have to do the exhibition. He’s in the lounge complaining to Lilia and Yakov about it when he spots Otabek walking past the window. Excitement fills him up and he leaps from his chair to run outside to his friend. 

“Beka!” Otabek stops and turns to look at Yuri. “You goin’ out somewhere?” 

“Yeah. An acquaintance of mine is DJing at a club nearby, so I thought I’d stop by.” Yuri perks up at the idea of going to a club with Otabek, dancing with him. 

“Seriously?!? Lemme come too!!” He yells. Otabek frowns.

“Yuri. How old are you now..?”

“I’m 15!! Gonna be 16 next march!!” Yuri announces proudly.

“Sorry, I can’t bring you along.” Otabek flees as he speaks. Yuri’s chest feels tight when he realizes that Otabek doesn’t want to spend time with him. 

“You’re only 18 yourself!” He yells after his supposed friend. “You’re abandoning me on a night when I’m all messed up inside..?! And you call yourself my friend?! We’re through dammit!!” 

So maybe he hadn’t actually told Otabek that he was unsure about the exhibition skate but they’d been so connected the past few days that he just kind of assumed Otabek would know. 

“Crap, if I cut ties with him, then there won’t be anyone left to listen to me bitch!! Dammit, what club did he run off to?!” A quick google search reveals that there’s a few clubs in the area and Yuri picks the closest and he heads for it. He gets thrown out of four different clubs before he finds club Barceloneta and once again gets thrown out by the bouncer. He sits on the curb outside and hugs his knees tightly. He hates that he’s so young right now. He hates that he’s even doing this, he doesn’t know why he wants to find Otabek so badly right now and the more he searches the more desperate he gets. 

As if the night couldn’t get any worse he soon finds himself surrounded by a group of the other skaters. Sara and Mira coddle him like a child and he’s so upset with himself that he actually gives in and tells them what is going on. 

“I don’t think Barceloneta the kind of club you’d find him at. It’s more for the hardcore clubbers.” Sara says as she pats his head. Yuri doesn’t admit that this is the fourth club he’s checked. 

“We didn’t see him inside. Why not just call him? You’re friends aren’t you?” Mira asks. 

“He’s not picking up…” Yuri admits hating himself a little more. 

“Ah, I see. Want to hang out with us, then..” Mira nudges him and her tone definitely sounds suspicious. Why would this group ditch a club to hang with him when Otabek, his only actual friend, wouldn’t?

“Hell no.” He grumbles hugging his knees tighter. 

“You’ve got the exhibition tomorrow don’t ya? Snot-nosed brats need to get to bed early!” Michele yells at him. Yuri can’t even gather enough of the energy to yell back.

“Pipe down.” He mumbles. 

“Emil! That pool looks like it’d feel great!” Sara yells. Yuri suddenly finds himself lifted into the air by Emil.

“Ooh! It sure does!!”

“Cut it out! Put me down now!” Yuri yells, thankful for his years of ballet letting him keep his balance on Emil's one hand. 

“Will you promise not to be so rude to my brother and friends, then..” Sara asks. “Just how long is the GPF gold medalist planning on playing the grouchy stray cat, Hmm?” Yuri hates them all. Emil sets him back down and Yuri lets himself plop onto the ground.

“Try putting yourself in Otabek’s shoes.” Mira says. “Friends or not, he just lost to you in your senior debut.”

“Why not leave him to himself just for tonight?” Sara asks. 

“Huh?!” Yuri hadn’t even thought about that. He’d know if Otabek was really that upset about losing to him, wouldn’t he? “Why should I have to leave him alone when he’s my friend?! If he’s pissed at me, he should just come out and say so! I’ve got something I wanna say to him, so I’m gonna find him, no matter what it takes! And… And if i can’t find him…. I won’t skate in the exhibition!” That got all of their attention but Yuri think he may have just made a mistake.

“Huh? Is that your way of DEMANDING we help you find Otabek?” Mira asks.

“Can’t you say anything without it sounding like a threat?” Michele looks really pissed.

“What a naughty kitty!!” Emil scolds, Yuri wonders if he could get away with kicking Emil.

“This is gonna be a pain if we don’t hurry up and get this over with and send him back to the hotel…” Sara mutters as she pulls out his phone. 

“Let’s work together and try to find any info we can on Otabek.”

“Gotcha!”

“I bet Leo-kun will know something.” 

“But you have to call them yourselves!” Mira announces as she points a finger at Yuri. “We’ll tell you the other skaters’ numbers.”

“Eh?!” Yuri wonders if this is really worth all the trouble but he thinks about the exhibition skate and how much he needs to see Otabek right now and suddenly he finds himself adding the numbers into his phone. Taking a deep breath he dial’s Leo’s number and puts it on speaker. 

He has to get through Leo, Chris, Georgi and an attempted call to Seung-gil before he calls Guang-hong, who apparently already heard from Leo and he got info from one of his fans that Otabek’s motorcycle had been parked in El poblenou.

“I hope you find him!! I’m looking forward to your exhibition tomorrow!!” Yuri hangs up the phone and he knows exactly what he’s going to do now. Thanks to the other skaters he’s able to get a quick ride back to the hotel where he changes into the outfit that he’d bought with Otabek a few days before. Otabek had said then that Yuri looked good in it and he’s sure that it’s the perfect one for tonight. If he thinks that an age restriction is gonna keep Yuri out of anywhere he’s got another thing coming. 

At the club Mira and the others all surround the bouncer speaking in their native languages. While he’s confused Yuri slips in without a problem. His eyes scan the crowd and to his surprise he finds Otabek in the DJ booth and not on the dance floor. Yuri had no idea that he could DJ and he curses himself a bit for not asking more questions. He leans up against the wall and crosses his arms. He’d decided to wear Otabek’s gloves again and for some reason it makes him feel more confident. 

Otabek’s eyes lock onto Yuri from across the room and the younger man can’t help but smirk as he pulls his glasses down just enough to meet the older man's gaze. The music is good and Yuri really wants to dance so he does, he can feel Otabek’s eyes on him as he lets his jacket slip off his shoulders. He wonders a bit if the skater remembers the outfit. If he remembers the backless tank top. If it interests him at all. Yuri smiles as he dances and he points a finger gun at Otabek and grins at the smirk on his face. Yuri knows that his challenge was accepted. 

The music changes and Yuri thinks his heart stops. He sees the finger gun that Otabek shoots back at him and he thinks that he really might be in love. The song is perfect. It’s so friggin cool and Yuri knows exactly what he wants to do. He makes his way across the dance floor and easily leaps into the DJ Booth. 

“Otabek!! I want to skate to this song for my Exhibition!!” Otabek looks shocked for a second but then he laughs and wraps his arm around Yuri’s waist, lifting him easily out of the way as he turns the booth back over to his friend. Yuri feels giddy and grips Otabek’s shirt as they move through the crowd. He doesn’t know where Otabek is taking him but he’s just happy to go along for the ride. 

They end up walking for a while until they come to a park. Yuri plops down onto a bench and lets out a breath. He’s shivering a bit, the outfit looks amazing but it definitely isn’t the warmest. A sudden warmth hits his face as Otabek’s jacket is dropped onto his head. He blushes and pulls it on properly as Beka sits down beside him. 

“You’re gonna change your exhibition choreography now?! And you want to keep the changes a secret until just before you actually skate in the exhibition..?” Otabek asks. Yuri knows that it sounds crazy but he can still feel the song coursing through him.

“Lilia choreographed the exhibition program I’ve been skating all season to go along with my free skate program…” Yuri explains, “When I skate that, it feels like I’m just riding on my free program’s coattails and I can’t really get into it. Plus, this time I lost to Katsuki in the free skate. Even though I won in the end, it still pisses me off. If I’m gonna skate feeling all torn up inside, then I feel like I may as well skate to a totally different song. So I… Just wanted to get your advice about it, is all…” 

“I see… I’m sorry then.” Otabek says, putting his hand on his chin. Yuri finds himself leaning just a bit closer to the other skater. 

“I didn’t want things to end awkwardly between us… It’s been bugging me.” the wind is blowing strongly but wearing the over-sized jacket and being so close to Otabek makes it so Yuri barely notices the cold. He wishes that he never had to move away. Otabek stands suddenly and Yuri panics for just a moment before he realizes that the other skater is talking. 

“All right. But if we’re going to make something, let’s make something so cool, It’ll lay everyone flat out!” Otabek holds out his hand, “That’s the Yuri I most want to see”

“Yeah!” Yuri grabs onto Otabek’s hand and allows himself to be pulled to his feet. He thinks he might cry or do something else stupid.

Neither of the two skaters sleep that night. Otabek manages to get the key to the skating rink somehow and they go over the new program over and over. Yuri was never one to really care what the program was as long as it got him gold but now it’s different. Now he’s creating something of his own, no he’s not on his own. He’s here with Otabek. Every fall, every mistake, every time Yuri starts to lose his motivation, or doubt his choices Otabek is right there. He cheers him on and he offers him support. 

***

The program is exactly what Yuri wants it to be. He stands on the side of the ice in his own clothes instead of a costume this time. He doesn’t feel nervous. He’s ready. Otabek stands beside him. He’s going to show that stupid pig Katsuki how its done. 

That is until Yuuri cheats and brings Victor onto the ice for a pairs skate. Using Victor is 100% cheating. Yuri is pissed. He’s beyond pissed. He wants to run out on the ice and kick both of those stupid idiots. Otabek lays his hand on Yuri’s arm and like a magic spell the anger is gone. Well mostly. 

“I guess our surprises overlapped…” Otabek mumbles.

“Those damn pigs!!” Yuri is going to fix this, “Otabek!” 

“What?”

“For my final exhibition, you be in it too!” Yuri orders.

“But i’m done performing…”

“We’re gonna be even more intense than those two!!” Yuri turns to face Otabek and grabs onto the older man’s shirt, with skates on their height is more even. “You’re gonna watch me lay everyone flat out, Right?” Otabek meets Yuri’s gaze and he knows that Otabek will do whatever he needs him to. But still, a verbal confirmation would feel nice.

“So? Are you gonna do it? Or are you not gonna do it..?” 

“We’re friends, aren’t we?” Otabek asks, there’s a playful gleam in his eyes. “Then there’s only one answer” 

The new program is nothing like anything Yuri has done before. It destroys his image as the fairy of Russia. It’s fast and grueling. Otabek’s part will be small. He won’t even have to do much skating but Yuri knows that after all the attention their escape earlier in the week got that this will be perfect. The hero of Kazakhstan and the former fairy of Russia. 

The lights in the arena stay off. Yuri stays in the spotlight he tosses his jacket away and he knows that he won’t have to worry about tripping on it. Otabek will use the darkness to come onto the ice, he’ll collect Yuri’s jacket before he takes his place on the side of the rink. 

Yuri sees the now familiar silhouette of Otabek in position and he skates over. He’s wearing the other skaters gloves again, they’re the perfect size for what he wants. Yuri throws his glasses into the stands and holds his first hand out. Otabek grabs the glove and pulls it off easily, Yuri’s the one that makes the mistake. He holds his other hand too high and he knows that the movement of taking it off will be awkward, except Otabek leans forward and his teeth snag onto the glove and Yuri thinks that if he wasn’t a professional he might have just fainted right there. He keeps his eyes on Otabek as much as he can through the program. He sees the first finger gun and he jumps right on time. The second one hits him. He lays himself down on the ice. It burns against his bare skin and his heart is racing so fast that he thinks it might burst out of his chest. 

He knows that the crowds are screaming, someone is announcing something. But the noise is all muted, it's in the distance. He hears the sound of skates on the ice and then Otabek is standing over him. He holds out his hand and Yuri reaches up to clasp it. The new gloves that Otabek borrowed aren’t as long as the ones Yuri had taken from him. Otabek’s sleeve rides up and Yuri can read the words etched there now. 

**‘Move loser’** in a handwriting that Yuri knows all too well. Instead of getting up he pulls Otabek down into a clumsy kiss. The older man holds himself over Yuri carefully and looks into his eyes. The rest of the world has disappeared. 

“What does my soul-mark mean?” Yuri asks. He grips Otabek’s jacket tightly to keep him from getting away. 

“You don’t know?” Otabek asks. Yuri shakes his head and allows Otabek to remove the cuff from his wrist. “Joq, it means no.” 

“Your handwriting sucks.’ Yuri says. He moves one hand to the back of Otabek’s neck and pulls him down into another kiss. 


End file.
